Indian skipper Virat Kohli has finally broken his silence on the controversy that has engulfed Indian cricket after KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya’s appearance on talk show Koffee with Karan. Both the players are coping severe criticism for appearing in the show without taking permission from the authorities and making inappropriate as well as derogatory remarks.

While Rahul has been spared by the fans to some extent, Pandya has been facing massive backlash for his bold comments on the show. The allrounder, known for his flashy lifestyle, got carried away in the show and ended up revealing a bit too much. His take on matters related to women has taken aback the country. One of his most disturbing remarks was about his family being open and how he came home after losing his virginity and said, “Aaj karke aya hai (I did it today).”

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He also recalled taking his parents to a party where they asked him which woman he was seeing, and he pointed at all of them one by one. Pandya has already issued his apology but it has paid little dividends. Not only is he facing criticism, he and Rahul are also in danger of suffering severe punishments from the BCCI. The Indian cricket board has already issued a show-cause notice to the duo while CoA chief Vinod Rai has insisted that a harsh action will be taken on the duo.

Kohli’s take on the matter

Speaking ahead of the first ODI against Australia in Sydney, India skipper Virat Kohli made it clear that the team does not support Pandya and Rahul’s inappropriate comments. He also insisted that the comments were individual opinions while stating that those were indeed inappropriate.

“From Indian cricket team point of view, any inappropriate comments that are made in that scenario are something that we definitely don’t support. These are purely individual opinions & inappropriate,” said Kohli.

“I can definitely say that as the Indian cricket team and as responsible cricketers, we definitely don’t align with those views and those are purely individual views,” he added.

The skipper further said that both the players have realized their mistakes before confirming that the team-management is still waiting on the board’s decision on the two, “Inappropriate comments and that has been communicated. The two players felt what has gone wrong and they have understood the magnitude of what’s happened. Still waiting for a decision (re-selection) to be made.”